A significant โsolar flare erupted sunday, potentially bringing the aurora borealis-commonlyโฃ known asโ the northern lights-to view as early as Wednesday evening in regions of the northern hemisphere. The flare, classifiedโฃ as X1.9 by NASA, originated โฃfrom a large and active sunspot โขgroupโ recently appearing on the sun’s edge, and is โฃalready impacting space-based and terrestrial systems.
This event โmarks a notable space weather occurrence with potential effects ranging โfrom disrupted radio communications to visible atmospheric displays. While the primary impact is expected overnight Wednesday into Thursday,the sunspot group responsible-designated AR4299-remains active and could produce further flares in the coming โฃweeks. Theโค strength of โthe aurora display, and the extent of โขany technologicalโฃ disruptions, will depend on the precise trajectory of theโ ejected particles andโ local weather โconditions.
According to NASA’s Solar โDynamics Observatory, theโ initial flare briefly interfered withโ radioโฃ communications in Australia and Southeast asia. More concerningโฃ is the accompanying coronal mass ejection (CME), a surgeโข of charged โparticles and magnetic fields. When a CME reachesโข Earth, it can trigger geomagnetic storms capable of affecting satellites,โค power โฃgrids, and navigation systems.
The National Oceanic and โAtmospheric Administration (NOAA) has issued a โฃgeomagnetic storm alert for Wednesday night throughโ Thursday, โforecasting a potentialโ impact reaching class G3, which experts describeโ as “forte.”โ A G3 stormโค could make the northern lights visible at lower latitudesโค than typically observed. However, forecasters caution that cloud cover and the orientationโค of the solar ejection will be key โขfactors determining visibility.
